Posts Tagged ‘rinspeed uc?’

Rinspeed comes up with another odd, evocative concept for the upcoming Geneva Motor Show.

About this time of year, as the sun starts to vanish earlier and earlier and the snows begin to fall, you might understand why the teaser we received from RinSpeed, the quirky Swiss design house, generated so much interest.

A familiar name to anyone who has attended the annual Geneva Motor Show, Rinspeed has a history of coming up with wild and wacky automotive designs – cars that can fly, or transform into submarines. Last year’s UC? electric microcar could slot into a specially-designed train like a weary traveler into an old-fashioned Pullman bed for long-distance journeys.

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And now comes the BamBoo, which like we sun-starved Detroiters, is “longing for sun, summer, lightness and easiness, the desire to be at the beach,” according to a provocative press release. And yes, as it continues, we probably can imagine “Brigitte Bardot behind the wheel with playboy Gunther Sachs at her side heading towards Tahiti beach.”

In keeping with the name, this safari-style concept vehicle makes extensive use of bamboo for its interior componentry. The basic design is as simple as it gets, and actually brings to mind some of the delightfully odd and retro machines that Nissan brought to the Japanese domestic market in the 1990s, such as the snail-like – and appropriately named — S-Cargo.

The Rinspeed UC? isn't just a commuter car, it's said, but an entire "mobility concept."

We’re always intrigued when e-mail comes in from the quirky Swiss design house, Rinspeed. Over the years, they’ve come up with flying cars, floating cars, and even a vehicle that can reconfigure its interior layout depending on how many passengers it’s carrying.

But the latest design exercise, due to make a more formal appearance at the Geneva Motor Show, early in 2010, is decidedly more than just another concept vehicle. It is, in the company’s words, “an entire mobility concept.”

Tomorrow!

The goal is to create “a new and highly emotional web-based car world that interweaves individual and public transport in an intelligent way. We want to create a community of people who are open for a new definition of mobility,” says Rinspeed boss Frank M. Rinderknecht. If you want to cut through the hyperbole, read on.